jetBlueNYFL
Nov 10, 06, 10:33 pm
I hope I'm not the only one on here who reads David Neeleman's weekly flight log on the new jetblue.com.
This topic has been covered in a thread some months ago (I believe over the summer).
Very interesting and great news to see jetBlue still supporting alternative energy sources! Actions speak louder than words!!
From this week's "column".....
10-November-2006
Energy Independence is Our Responsibility
This week, we exercised our responsibilities as American citizens and cast a vote for the candidate of our choice to represent us in local, state, and federal government. But our responsibility does not end with casting a ballot – I think it goes much deeper and broader than that. We have to get smarter on the big issues facing us as a country, and get involved in finding solutions.
One of the themes of this year’s mid-term elections was energy independence, and how beneficial it would be to our national security to diversify our energy sources. I have been frustrated by energy issues as a business person for a long time, given how much fuel we consume. My interest is in developing a more predictable and efficient energy supply that is less prone to speculative market fluctuations. With a more reliable, domestic energy source, and along with that, a less volatile cost to energy-dependent companies like JetBlue, the consumer will benefit from lower prices.
My frustration with our dependence on foreign oil as a primary energy source finally led me to get smart on the issue. Last year, I started learning everything I could on a specific alternative energy that would, I believe, greatly benefit the American economy: converting coal into liquid fuel. The technology has already been proven – the barrier to creating a home-grown energy source is the cost of building coal-to-liquid facilities. But the result would be a viable source of energy that costs less than $45 a barrel – or $1.15 a gallon. (Compare that to imported sources of oil, costing $60-ish price per barrel, and you can appreciate the enormous cost reduction potential.) If the government can take a leadership role on developing an energy plan, complete with funding to create coal-to-liquid facilities, American consumers, especially people who rely on air travel for business or leisure, will greatly benefit.
I can’t speak for all American companies, but in the railroad, trucking and airline industry, prices are set by the company with the lowest costs. Very few industries actually aim to mark down their prices like we do – and personally, I believe air fares should be lower. I think more people should travel, and more people would be able to travel if the fares were lower. But we have to price our flights to cover the cost of business. Lower fuel prices – and a less volatile, domestic energy source – would let us lower prices, and still make JetBlue a profitable company.
I mentioned earlier that I’ve spent the last year getting smart on this issue. I was honored to work with Congressman Rick Boucher (from Virginia) and John Shimkus (from Illinois), who co-sponsored a bill earlier this year that would provide funding mechanisms to ensure the production of at least six coal to liquid production plants. Read the text of the bill here. I encourage you to tell your elected representatives to support this important piece of legislation.
-David
This topic has been covered in a thread some months ago (I believe over the summer).
Very interesting and great news to see jetBlue still supporting alternative energy sources! Actions speak louder than words!!
From this week's "column".....
10-November-2006
Energy Independence is Our Responsibility
This week, we exercised our responsibilities as American citizens and cast a vote for the candidate of our choice to represent us in local, state, and federal government. But our responsibility does not end with casting a ballot – I think it goes much deeper and broader than that. We have to get smarter on the big issues facing us as a country, and get involved in finding solutions.
One of the themes of this year’s mid-term elections was energy independence, and how beneficial it would be to our national security to diversify our energy sources. I have been frustrated by energy issues as a business person for a long time, given how much fuel we consume. My interest is in developing a more predictable and efficient energy supply that is less prone to speculative market fluctuations. With a more reliable, domestic energy source, and along with that, a less volatile cost to energy-dependent companies like JetBlue, the consumer will benefit from lower prices.
My frustration with our dependence on foreign oil as a primary energy source finally led me to get smart on the issue. Last year, I started learning everything I could on a specific alternative energy that would, I believe, greatly benefit the American economy: converting coal into liquid fuel. The technology has already been proven – the barrier to creating a home-grown energy source is the cost of building coal-to-liquid facilities. But the result would be a viable source of energy that costs less than $45 a barrel – or $1.15 a gallon. (Compare that to imported sources of oil, costing $60-ish price per barrel, and you can appreciate the enormous cost reduction potential.) If the government can take a leadership role on developing an energy plan, complete with funding to create coal-to-liquid facilities, American consumers, especially people who rely on air travel for business or leisure, will greatly benefit.
I can’t speak for all American companies, but in the railroad, trucking and airline industry, prices are set by the company with the lowest costs. Very few industries actually aim to mark down their prices like we do – and personally, I believe air fares should be lower. I think more people should travel, and more people would be able to travel if the fares were lower. But we have to price our flights to cover the cost of business. Lower fuel prices – and a less volatile, domestic energy source – would let us lower prices, and still make JetBlue a profitable company.
I mentioned earlier that I’ve spent the last year getting smart on this issue. I was honored to work with Congressman Rick Boucher (from Virginia) and John Shimkus (from Illinois), who co-sponsored a bill earlier this year that would provide funding mechanisms to ensure the production of at least six coal to liquid production plants. Read the text of the bill here. I encourage you to tell your elected representatives to support this important piece of legislation.
-David